Tuesday, August 17, 2010

Too often when speaking in public, presenters try to give you all of their information. To be world class, don’t make too many points within your speech. Five points, give or take up to two, is the rule. We tend to retain what we can count on one hand. Presenters who presume to teach 21 tips in 21 minutes are pretty content-centred, and do not really respect the mathematics of retention.

Some tips:

1. Have 3-7 core messages to your presentation2. Every 7-15 minutes or so, introduce a new point3. Always have less rather than more. Fear makes us over-prepare content4. Have a “bare bones” version of your speech prepared with 1-3 points only5. Always have one overarching point for every speech, and make this very clear